Tube forming and handling mechanism



June 19, 1928.

W. T. DAVIS TUBE FORMING AND HANDLING MECHANISM 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 5, 1925 June 19, 1928.

W. T. DAVIS TUBE FORMING AND HANDLING MECHANISM 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Fgab -5, 1925 June 19, 1928. 1,674,467

W. T. DAVIS TUBE FORMING AND HANDLING MECHANISM Filed Feb. 5, 1925 s Sheets-Sheet 3 fi fiMM Patented June 19, 1928.

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER T. DAVIS, OF WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR TO WHEELINQ STAMP ING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF WEST VIRGINIA.

TUBE FORMING AND HANDLING MECHANISM.

Application filed February 3, 1925. Serial No. 6,620.

present invention, it is still customary in a number of factories to strip the tubes by hand from the forming plunger, transfer the tubes by hand to hoppers or cartons and later again transfer the tubes by hand to mandrels on which certain finishing operations are performed, it being understood that the term finishing operations is used in its generic sense as above outlined. In my prior Patent No. 1,515,383 of November 11, 1924 I have disclosed and claimed automatically operable mechanism for stripping the tubes from the forming plunger and conveying the same to some point of use. In the patent of John A. McGinnis No. 1,457,179 there is disclosed and claimed tube handling mechanism by means of which the tubes may be automatically trimmed and threaded, out to length and the caps applied. There has heretofore, however, been no mechanism by means of which it has been possible to eliminate the hand application of the tubes to the mandrels on which such or other finishing operations are performed. The extreme delicacy of the tubes makes it desirable to eliminate as many manual operations as possible as each manual operation involves a possibility of crushing or spoiling the tubes.

- It is one of the objects of the present invention, to obviate certain of the manual steps heretofore considered as necessary and effect a mechanical handling of the tubes particularly with respect to their application to mandrels on which the desired finishing operations are to be carried out. v

In the accompanying drawings I have shown, for purposes of illustration only,-'one embodiment of the present invention, it being understood that the drawings do not define the limits of my invention and that chan es in the construction and operation therem disclosed may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention or scope of my broader claims.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a front elevation of a portion of a tube forming machine adapted to form part of the present system;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of a portion of a finishing machine showing means for automatically applying the tubes thereto;

Figure 3 is a detail sectional view on an enlarged scale, and partly in elevation illustrating one form of, actuating mechanism;

Figure 4 is a side elevation of a portion of the mechanism shown in Figures 2 and 3;

Figure 5 is a detail sectional view, partly in elevation illustrating a convenient mechanism for controlling the actuating mechanism, and

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view illustrating a portion of the finishing machine.

The tube forming machine shown in Figure 1 may be of the general type disclosed in my patent before referred to and comprising a main frame 2 carrying a reciprocating cross head 3 for operating the extrusion plunger 4. This plunger may be mounted on a swinging arm 5 movable about the axis am, and of such construction that as it swings rearwardly to bring the plunger into cooperation with a fixed die carrier 6 it moves downwardly into position to be engaged by the cross head 3, while upon the reverse movement it swings outwardly and upwardly to bring the plunger over a guide 7 for the reception of the forming tubes.

Conveniently, the machine is of the type having automatic stripping means for the formed tubes, here illustrated as comprising a tube 8 for delivering air under pressure to the interior of the plunger to efi'ect the stripping operation as set forth in my before by the arrows whereby the upper run of the conveyor is adapted to directly receive the formed tubes from the guide. The conveyor, as shown in plan in Figure 2 is of a width slightly greater than the width of a formed tube T and is mounted on a channel 9 having rollers 10 in the opposite ends thereof so disposed as to bring the upper run of the conveyor above the channel and the lower run below the channel. Carried by the chan nel below the upper run is acushion 11 adapted to cushion the impact of the tubes as they are stripped from the mandrel and prevent injury thereto, the upper run of the conveyor springing downwardly under the impact of the tubes and further assisting in the cushioning operation. Theconveyor is adapted to be driven in any desired manner according to the particular type of the machine with which it is used. I

At its delivery end, shown in Figure 2, the conveyor is adapted to cooperate with a hopper 12 or other receptacle preferably of a width slightly greater than the length of the tubes and adapted to contain a plurality of the tubes at one time. As shown in F ig ure 6, the hopper 12 may be inclined downwardly whereby the tubes tend to roll about their own longitudinal axes to the lower end of the hopper. At this point, the side guides 13 are interrupted or cut away to permit the discharge of the formed tubes at one side and to accommodate an actuating mechanism at the other side.

In the embodiment of the invention THUS".

trated, I have shown a portion of a finishing machine comprising a turret 14 carrying four mandrels 15 equidistantly spaced thereon and each adapted to be individually rotated about its own longitudinal axis as understood in the art and as shown, for example, in the McGinnis patent to which attention has been called. In operation, the turret 14 has a step by step movement bringing each mandrel successively to the stations I, II, III and IV. At the station I the tubes are adapted to be applied to the mandrels, at the station II the necks are threaded and trimmed while at the station III the tubes are cut to length and the caps applied. The trimming operation at station II removes a suflicient amount of metal from the neck end so that the depre sion formed during extrusion is'intersected, and the desired delivery opening provided. At the station IV the finished tubes, with respect to the operations referred to, are removed from the mandrels to prepare them for the reception of new tubes. The threading and trimming operation may be performed at the station II by a suitable cutter 16 adjustably carried in a suitable holder 17 on a slide 18, the slide being adapted for intermittent reciprocation through the medium of a stud 19 carrying at its lower end an anti-friction roller 20 working in the cam groove 21. This cam groove is of such shape as to intermittently advance and retract the slide to bring it into and out of engagement with the tubes in timed relation to the operation of the turret 14. The cutting of the tubes to length may be effected by suitable cutter 22 while the caps may be applied by mechanism indicated diagrammatically at 23. I

Inasmuch as the movement of the slide 18 is synchronized with the movement of the turret 14, it may conveniently be utilized as a control mechanism for the actuating or tube transfer mechanism. This actuating or transfer mechanism is herein shown as comprising a cylinder 24 having mounted therein a piston 25 carried by a piston rod 26 extended at both ends and guided in heads 27. Operating fluid, such as air under pressure, may be supplied to the cylinder for moving the piston in opposite directions through a pipe 28 delivering through a combined valve and distributing pipe 29. communicating at its opposite ends with ports in the opposite ends of the c linder. The valve 29 may be operated to e 'ect the supply of the actuating fluid to either end of the cylinder at will .by a lever 31 operated by a link 32 joined at one end to the lever and at its opposite end to the control slide 18, as shown for example in Figure 5. By reason of this construction it will be apparent that for each movement of the slide 18 there will be a corresponding movement of the valve 29, the connections preferably being such that as the slide 18 moves inwardly to bring the cutter 16 into cooperation with a tube the valve 29 is actuated to admit fluid under pressure to the right hand end of the cylinder as shown in the drawings to cause the piston rod 26 to move to ward the left.

The actuating mechanism is so mounted, that the piston rod 26 moves in an axial line coinciding with the axis of the lowermost tube in the hopper 12 and with the axis of the mandrel 15 positioned in the station I. With this construction, each reciprocation of the piston rod 26 toward the left will cause it to engage the neck end of a tube T positioned in the hopper, and slide the same from the hopper directly onto a mandrel which is at that time positioned in the station I. As the control slide 18 retracts, the piston rod is caused to move to the right permitting a new tube to move into position in the hopper 12 and bringing the piston rod into the position for its next operation. The nature of the collapsible tubes, with which this invention is primarily adapted to be utilized, and the irregular configuration of their ends when moved onto the mandrel is such that a sudden pressure applied longitudinally to the tubes is liable to cause them to be crushed or distorted, also an appreciable amount of air is entrapped in the tubes and the rate of movement of the tubes onto the mandrel must be such that the entrapped air is permitted to escape without exerting a considerable counter force to the transfer mechanism. By utilizing the pneumatic transfer mechanism, the variations in the resistance of the tubes to movement onto the mandrel is compensated for by slight variations in the movement of the piston rod 26. Such variations are not possible in a positively driven transfer device having a definite cycle of movement. This cycle will be repeated each time a mandrel comes into position thereby insuring the mechanical application of a tube in timed relation to the operation of the finishing machine.

Conveniently, the hopper 12 may be provided with a projection 33 adapted to adjustably cooperate with a bracket 34. carried by the housing 35 for the cam containing the groove 21 and for the slide 18. By reason of this adjustable connection the amount of imclination of the hopper may be varied at will and the position thereof changed to bring it into exact axial alignment to insure the proper transfer and application of the tubes. The advantages of the present invention arise broadly from the provision of a mechanical transfer for collapsible tubes adapted to effect the transfer of the tubes compressible fluid.

5. In collapsible tube manufacturing apfrom a support to a finishing machine.

Further advantages of the invention arise from the provision of apparatus adapted to 'form tubes, mechanically deliver the same to a support and mechanically transfer the tubes from the support to a finishing mechanism.

1. In collapsible tube manufacturing apparatus, tube forming mechanism compris- 'mg a plunger on which the tubes are formed by extrusion, finishing mechanism comprising a mandrel on which the formed tubes are adapted to mechanism for forcing a formed tube onto said mandrel the pressure exerted by the pneumatic mechanism being substantially be positioned, and pneumatic.

dependent upon the resistance exerted by the tube, substantially as described.

2. In collapsible tube manufacturing apparatus, tube forming mechanism comprising a plunger on which the tubes are formed by extrusion, finishing mechanism comprising a mandrel on which the formed tubes are adapted to be positioned, and pneumatic mechanism for forcing a formed tube onto said mandrel, said mechanism embodying means adapted to move the formed tubes endwise by engagement with the necks thereof, substantially as described.

3. In apparatus for the handling of col- Iapsible tubes, a source of supply for unfinished tubes, finishing mechanism for the tubes comprising a mandrel, and means for forcing a tube onto said mandrel comprising pressure means, thepressure of which is substantially dependent upon the resistance exerted by the tube.

4. In collapsible tube handling apparatus, tube forming mechanism comprising a plunger on which tubes are.- formed, finishing mechanism comprising a mandrel on which the, formed tubes are positioned, and mechanism for forcing the formed tube onto said mandrel comprising means actuated by a paratus, tube forming mechanism comprising a plunger on which the tubes are formed by extrusion, finishing mechanism comprising a mandrel on which the formed tubes are adapted to be positioned and means actuated by a compressible fluid for forcing the formed tubes .onto said mandrel, said mechanism embodyin the means adapted to move the formed tu es endwise by engagement with the neck ends thereof, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

WALTER T. DAVIS. 

